Letting you Down
by thegirlfrommod4A
Summary: 5 times Oliver and Felicity let each other down, and one time they didn't. My longest fic in quite some time, but I still don't own a bit of it.


I OWN NOTHING. I've always been interested in the five-and-one stories, so I decided to try my hand at one. Super eager to see what happens next with the show overall and with Olicity specifically, so without further ado, I present: Letting You Down.

1\. The first time they met.

Oliver wasn't lying when he said that Felicity was the first person he saw as a person. But what he didn't tell her was that he had been mad at himself when she had quietly exploded into his life with her red pen and pink blouse. He had been longing to see his sister, his mother, his friends as people since he had returned, and by not just falling into "threat or target" like everyone else, Felicity had stolen that "first" honor from one of them. By virtue of her difference, he had, in the tiniest way, been disappointed in her for taking away what he felt rightfully should have been someone else's.

Felicity hadn't known Oliver before the island, though goodness knew she'd heard the stories. Since he'd been back, however, she'd been hearing about how much he had changed. When he walked into her office and dropped a lie the size of Starling City on her therefor, she felt strangely let down. His smile made her stomach do back flips and his voice made her heart flutter, but fundamentally decent human beings didn't waltz into your cubicle and expect you believe bullet holes came from a latte spill.

2\. At the auction

Okay, he would admit it. He was frustrated that she'd tried to be the hero. All she had had to do was text him or Diggle. Instead, she'd chosen to face the thief herself, and now she was on her way to being headless. How could she be a part of their team if she couldn't even keep herself out of trouble? Oliver took a deep breath and started working on a new plan.

She hadn't gotten to this level of gorgeous without some kind of effort. She'd know what kind of society she would be in, and had combed through her wardrobe accordingly, finally deciding on the gold dress. She hated contacts too, but she figured her usual horn-rims didn't exactly go with her look. She walked into the gala and immediately relaxed slightly when she realized she was in fact dressed appropriately. But when Oliver didn't say anything, not even a simple "you look lovely," she felt more upset than she knew she should have. She'd noticed his initial reaction after all.

3\. After Tommy

All he wanted was to be alone. Then John and Felicity showed up and he realized he wasn't lying when he told Felicity he was glad to see her, so he went back with them. He was upset, though, when she just didn't get that he couldn't do it any more. He couldn't dishonor his friend's memory by being someone that he hated so much. He had betrayed Tommy in life, he didn't need to do it in death as well, and he was displeased that she didn't understand that as he thought she should.

Felicity was mad that he left. He was supposed to be stronger than that. She had grown to see him as...not invincible. But something close. As someone who could and would survive everything, if not necessarily unscathed. So when he ran away and vanished, leaving the team, his family, and the rest of Starling behind, she was angry. He had gone through hell and survived, he was not allowed to sink into despair because of a tragedy. She thought, she knew, that he was better than that, and it disappointed her that he didn't see it.

4\. The Count

Felicity thought he wouldn't save her. That thought played on repeat through Oliver's head that night. Felicity thought he wouldn't save her. How could she? Did she not understand her value, to the team and to him? Did she not realize just how much of a tragedy it would be if her vibrant life were to be suddenly extinguished, or muted into a vertigo blur? Felicity thought he wouldn't save her. Did she really have that little faith in his devotion to her, after all they had been through? She was a brilliant woman. She should have known better.

Oliver had killed again. For her. Even after what he had said, she couldn't help being disappointed in him the tiniest bit for breaking his vow. He could have shot the syringes out of the count's hands. He could have shot one of the ones that hew had used on Sara, that bound a person. But instead, he killed, because withe her "There was no choice to make". But she was a tiny bit angry at him for not knowing better. He didn't have to break his vow, he didn't have to let down Tommy and ultimately, himself. H =e was good at this vigilante thing. He should have known better.

5\. That night

"Kill him". And Oliver was angry. She had been so cavalier about he own life, but now she wanted him to break his vow and sentence another to death. Did she not understand that her life was worth more to him than R'as Al Ghoul's death?

Oliver talked about his sister, and left her hanging. She knew what the second thing was of course, but he was making her say the words and even in these precious seconds, she was anything but happy with him. Didn't she deserve better than to ask for his love?

And 1. A second later.

"I love you" and it was perfect. The little smile that came over his face and lingered there after the words came out, the shake of hi head as if he couldn't believe it had taken this long, and the fact that he didn't follow it up with anything stupid or flowery or dramatic, so that if it was the last time they spoke, his last words to her were those.

She didn't say it back, and he was happy, because if she had he never would have gone. He could see it in her face though, in the way her body was angled towards him, and in the way her hand adopted his tic. She let him go, and the last words between them were "I love you." and it was perfect.


End file.
